The Washington Nationals are back home, and today marks exactly 20-years from the team’s first regular season game back in 2005. To commemorate this day, the Nationals have invited back five key players from that team to also participate in a ring ceremony to place the entire team in the Ring of Honor. The Nats first home game in 2005 was against the Arizona Diamondbacks who are the Nats’ opponent this weekend.
The 2005 Washington Nationals, which helped sports fans welcome baseball back to the District after a 33-year absence, will be inducted into the Nationals Ring of Honor on Saturday, April 5, as part of the 20th Anniversary Weekend celebration. The special weekend will also include alumni appearances, a commemorative ring giveaway on April 4, a 2005 replica jersey giveaway on April 5. In the pregame, there will be a tailgate with the 2005 players and all remaining original 2005 season ticket holders who still are plan holders today.
To start the 20th Anniversary Weekend festivities, 20,000 fans in attendance will receive a NATS20 replica commemorative ring on Friday, April 4, exactly 20 years after the Nationals’ inaugural game (April 4, 2005 at Philadelphia Phillies). Fans will also have the opportunity to enter to win one of 20 authentic commemorative rings valued at nearly $6,000 each by scanning QR codes around the ballpark that day to enter the sweepstakes.
Alumni from the 2005 team will participate in the Ring of Honor induction ceremony and make other special appearances throughout the weekend, including a pregame Q&A open to all ticketed fans on Friday, April 4, and a pregame photo and autograph session open to all ticketed fans on Saturday, April 5. Jamey Carroll, an infielder during the Nationals’ first season; All-Star relief pitcher Chad Cordero, who recorded the franchise’s first save on April 12, 2005, and saved a league-leading 47 games in 2005 to earn the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award; pitcher John Patterson, who started 31 games for the Nationals in 2005; Brian Schneider, who caught 113 games in 2005 and recorded the franchise’s first double on April 4, 2005; and Mr. National himself, Ryan Zimmerman, the first-ever draft pick of the Nationals in 2005 who made his Major League debut on Sept. 1 of that year and is the all-time franchise leader in hits, total bases, doubles, RBI, games played, walks, runs and home runs; are all scheduled to take part in the weekend celebration.
“We are very excited to honor the 2005 team during our 20th Anniversary Weekend as we celebrate two decades of Nationals baseball with our fans. These players represent the first team to be inducted into the Ring of Honor as they helped start a new chapter of baseball in D.C. and establish the Nationals as the hometown team for generations to come.”
— said Mark D. Lerner, Managing Principal Owner
For today’s game, the Nationals enter at a poor 1-5 record and must start to put together some wins. A key would be scoring early because the Nats’ offense has only scored a total of six runs over the first 5.0 innings this season which is an average of 0.20 runs per inning in the first 5-frames. The team has no first or third inning runs.
The Washington Nationals send Jake Irvin to the mound for this game. The Diamondbacks have RHP Brandon Pfaadt who struggled in his first start.
“Let’s go 1-0 today.”
— manager Dave Martinez said
Remember when Michael Soroka left his start on Monday with a “minor” bicep cramp? That has been now reclassified as a right biceps strain which will most likely move Brad Lord to the starting rotation with Jackson Rutledge recalled from Triple-A Rochester to take Soroka’s roster spot. The 2019 first-round pick was reclassified in Spring Training as a reliever. That seriously puts the Nats starter depth in serious question as Cade Cavalli is not ready, and the next starter might be Andrew Alvarez in Triple-A.
In the offseason, Soroka signed a one-year, $9 million contract, which made him the 22nd highest paid starter in the offseason. The issue was Soroka had no success last year as a starter for Chicago and was demoted to the bullpen where he actually was very good. In Soroka’s start against Toronto, 83rd pitch the game, a spiked slider in the bottom of the sixth, after which he looked toward the dugout and began clenching his fist.
We spoke with Dr. Brian Polsky who is a board-certified, fellowship-trained Orthopedic Surgeon at The Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics. Even before the reclassification to a bicep strain, here is what Dr. Polsky said:
“Now, a cramp, technically, is a diagnosis of a muscle, not really a tendon. So, it’s an interesting use of the word ‘cramp.’ In my opinion, it seems like it was more a bicep strain, like he was throwing, and his arm started to get fatigued, and he kept throwing. And the tendon, the biceps tendon, is one of the more important tendons for the act of throwing, so it got overused a little bit and got strained.
Now, a strain, technically, at a microscopic level, is tearing of some of the tissue, but it’s a very minor version of an injury if you catch it early enough. It’s not a surgical issue, but it’s a matter of letting those tissues heal. That can happen pretty quickly, even within days to weeks, depending on how strained it is.
It sounds like it’s a minor strain on that bicep tendon.”
The Nats starting pitchers have a combined ERA of 3.34 and 12th best in MLB. The reliever’s ERA sits at a poor 7.78 and must improve.
Here is how they rank by ERA in the first time through the rotation:
No. 5 Starter: Trevor Williams 5.40
No. 4 Starter: Michael Soroka 7.20
No. 3 Starter: Mitchell Parker 0.00
No. 2 Starter: Jake Irvin 3.60
No. 1 Starter: MacKenzie Gore 2.45
Washington Nationals vs. Arizona Diamondbacks
Stadium: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
1st Pitch: 6:45 pm EDT
TV: MASN2
Radio: 106.7 The Fan radio and via the MLB app; In Spanish on DC 87.7 FM and La Pantera 100.7 FM/1220 AM. On Sirius/XM, tune to Channel 183 for the home broadcast and the road team is online only.
Line-up subject to change (without notice):
